Broken Dreams
by savedprincess85
Summary: The war affected George Weasley. He lost his twin and has to figure out how to live. Written for Round 9 QL. Warning: Character Death


**Round 9 Chaser 2 Song Prompt: Who Wants to Live Forever; Lyrics I chose to incorporate: **

**Who wants to live forever?/ Who?/ Who dares to love forever?**

**The lyrics are split up within a paragraph, but they are there. **

**Bonus prompts (character) Fred Weasley, (color) royal purple, (dialogue) "I want to lead the Victorian life, surrounded by exquisite clutter." **

**Warning: Character death**

**Word count: 1211**

May 2, 1998. The day that haunts me. It will haunt me for the rest of my life. It was the day that changed my life forever.

We had just read in the newspaper that Harry, Ron, and Hermione had robbed Gringotts and escaped on a dragon. A dragon!

Fred and I, we were shocked at their gall, at their bravery, and at the hell, they went through to end this bloody war. Being in hiding, hoping against hope that the darkness would soon be over was so hard for all of us. Fred and I were fun-loving pranksters. We had a business to run, but that wasn't to be, not for a long time.

Instead of running a business, we collected information on who was captured and who was dead and aired an illicit radio program. After giving our daily report on Potterwatch, we sat, Fred and I, in our royal purple coats, reminiscing of the first day we opened Weasley's Wizards Wheezes. We laughed together at how irate Mum was at our choice of profession. Her voice could hit the perfect pitch to make birds fly away.

Our laughter was interrupted by Mum. "Get changed. There's going to be a battle," she commanded.

Panic set in. Battle. It was coming. The place? Hogwarts.

Where else could it end? Voldemort was evil enough to attack a school full of children. The man was insane. Fred and I had a theory that he never laughed until his stomach hurt a day in his miserable life. Of course, we were convinced that laughter could make anything better.

We arrived at the castle before the hoards of Death Eaters, but just barely. Fred and I were instructed to guard one of the secret entrances to Hogwarts. It had been barred for the school year, but with Death Eaters arriving, they could come in behind us and attack our rear.

We guarded that entrance. Percy joined us, having finally decided to join the side that wasn't out to annihilate an entire race. Fred forgave Percy almost immediately, but I held back. I had always been a bit less trusting than my twin.

War is hell, plain and simple. Different color spells were flying in all directions. Bodies fell all around us. Walls exploded. It was pure adrenalin and reflex that allowed us to dodge it all. Until the battle took us to the seventh floor, outside the Room of Requirement. An ill-timed joke, an explosion, and my brother was gone. Dead.

That was war. Fred died with a smile on his lips. Apparently, Percy learned how to deliver a joke in the middle of a battleground. At least he died with a smile, right? That was something I clung to.

Now, I shake my head, thinking about this truth, because now I know the truth. Who wants to live forever? Voldemort wanted to, but he was destroyed by a seventeen-year-old boy. Harry Potter died that day as well, but who... who dares to love forever? Harry did, love that is; he loved others enough to die for them. I dare because that will always be what is right and good. Love was what defeated Voldemort. Hermione told Fred and me once that Voldemort wasn't the first to want to eradicate a race of people, but he was the first to almost succeed in living forever.

Countless lives were lost. Countless lives were changed.

I was without my twin. Mourning became a way of life, for a time, after that. I felt like I was only half living. I didn't know how to exist without Fred. Mum tried to help me, but she was broken as well.

One of the first sentences I spoke after Fred's death was to Mum. "Bury him in his royal purple coat, the one from our shop. He would want that."

"Why?" she asked, wiping the tears from her eyes. I could see the shock at my speaking to her; it had been a few days since I had spoken.

"Because that coat had memories. It was our hopes and dreams. Our last shared good memories were in that coat. I need him to have that coat with him," I told her quietly, tears streaming down my face as the words caught in my throat.

She doesn't argue. Mum knew I was hanging on by a thread.

A few months later, I'm living in a flat above our shop. Angelina visits occasionally. She misses Fred almost as much as I do since she was his girlfriend.

I may ask her to be mine; then again, maybe I won't. It all hurts too much to think of. Life without my twin doesn't feel like life. The joke shop is open downstairs. I can hear the sounds of customers that Lee, Angelina, and Verity are serving. Laughing children and their parents come to the shop just like before, but I'm barely hanging on. I'm thankful for my friends for keeping the dream going.

Once, Angelina asked if she could clean up the flat because I hadn't cleaned in what felt like an eternity. I laughed bitterly, "No, I want to lead the Victorian life, surrounded by exquisite clutter." I swept my arms around the room full of broken dreams I wanted to hide from but couldn't.

Angelina did not find my quip amusing, and instead, she cleaned my flat. Truly, that should have been the start of something new for Angelina and me. I saw her in a different light. She was crying as she cleaned. I could see her brokenness quite plainly. But I couldn't do anything about it, as I was drowning in my own despair.

All our dreams were in this shop. I can't think of pranks anymore without Fred. I need someone to help me out of the brokenness.

I stare in the mirror above the sink in the bathroom. All I see is Fred staring back at me. "How can I go on without you?" I scream at him. I punch the glass, hoping that my broken image will disappear.

A knock sounds on my door. It's Percy. He has been checking in on me a few times a week.

"I found a nice girl. Her name is Audrey. Would you be my best man?"

Tears well in my eyes. I know he feels like he should pay penance. The one no one wanted to make it through the war. The traitor. But he is wrong. I'm glad he made it and isn't living the half-life I am currently living.

"Yes," I say simply.

"Good. The colors are royal purple and white. Wear your coat. Wear it for you and Fred," Percy said quietly, taking down the mirror I had just broken.

"I don't know how to live, Percy. How can I go on?" I ask, hoping my studious brother has an answer for me.

Percy looks at me, picks up my hand that was cut by the broken glass, plucking the pieces of mirror. He waves his wand and my hand is healed of the cuts across the knuckles. "One day at a time. You get up and do one thing. And the next day, do another thing. Until you are living again. It won't be the same, but you will live. Give Angelina a chance. She is hurting too."


End file.
